This invention relates to certain furan derivatives and more particularly to ether derivatives of furyl-substituted alcohols, useful as fragrances.
Furan derivatives are known as perfume and flavor enhancers. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,764,567 discloses 2-(1'-hydroxymethyl-ethyl)-5-methyl-5-vinyl-tetrahydrofuran as having a lilac flower fragrance. U.S. Pat. No. 3,940,502 discloses certain furfuryl-alkyl or arylethers as flavor enhancers. U.S. Pat. No. 3,227,731 discloses 1-(.alpha.-furyl)-2,2-dialkyl-1,3-dihydroxypropane carbonates useful in perfume compounding. Moreover, Organic Chemistry, 1946, 7185-7186, discloses the preparation of certain methyl and ethyl ether derivatives of lower alkyl (C.sub.1 -C.sub.4) 2-furylcarbinols. None of these, however, are disclosed or suggested as fragrances or fragrance components.
The growing demand in recent years for perfumes with a pronounced green note has spurred interest in new synthetics that are chemically stable, are diffusive, and have a natural odor character. Most of the materials that are currently available are aldehydic in nature and thus suffer from instability in basic media.